Carrot Mango Soup

6 to 7 large carrots, about 2 lbs

1 tbsp olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

1-1/4 tsp curry powder

1/2 cup orange juice

4 cups vegetable stock or commercially available broth

1/2 tsp salt (optional)

2 large very ripe mangoes

sprinkling of snipped chives or chopped parsley

1. Peel and coarsely chop carrots.

2. In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and curry. Cook, stirring

frequently, until onion has softened and mixture is very fragrant, about 5 minutes.

3. Add carrots, broth, juice and salt. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer,

stirring occasionally, until carrots are very tender, about 30 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, peel and slice mangoes away from stones. Coarsely chop. Purée in a food

processor until as smooth as possible. Turn into a small bowl. When carrots are tender,

remove from broth and purée in batches using a little of broth. Return purée to

remaining broth in saucepan.

5. Stir in mango purée. Heat over medium-low heat, uncovered and stirring often, until

hot, about 5 minutes. Serve hot or refrigerate and serve cold with a scattering of snipped

chives. Soup will keep well, covered and refrigerated, for up to 3 days or freeze.

Suggestion: Be generous with the Orange juice and the mangoes!!

Forbidden Rice with Beans & Greens

Popular vegan chef Nava Atlas does it again with this invigorating mélange of flavors, textures and colors. This tatsy dish is from her cookbook, Wild About Greens. You’ll love the way the corn, black-eyed peas, and greens look against the dark rice, but if brown rice is what you’ve got on hand, tha'll work too. Serve it hot or at room temperature.

Ingredients:

1 cup forbidden black rice (or brown or wild rice) 3 cups vegetable broth or water 3 Tbs. olive oil 3 medium carrots, thinly sliced 2 large celery stalks, finely diced 3 - 4 scallions, white & green parts, thinly sliced 2 cups cooked corn kernels (fresh or thawed frozen) 10 -12 oz. collards greens or kale,stemmed & chopped 15 oz. can black-eyed peas, drained & rinsed 2 Tbs. balsamic vinegar juice of ½ to 1 lemon (to taste) ¼ cup chopped fresh dill, or more (to taste) ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley (or to taste) salt & freshly ground pepper (to taste) toasted pumpkin seeds for topping (optional)

Directions:

1. Combine rice in saucepan with broth; bring to simmer, then cover and simmer gently until water is absorbed, about 40 minutes.

2. Heat oil in large skillet or stir-fry pan; add carrots, celery, and white parts of scallion and sauté over medium heat until all are golden; stir in green parts of the scallion and corn.

3. In large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat; add chopped onion and sauté, stirring until it softens, about 5 minutes.

4. Add greens, and stir quickly to coat with oil, then add 1/4 cup water; continue cooking until greens are wilted down and nearly tender, about 3 to 5 minutes.

5. Add black-eyed peas, vinegar, and lemon juice; stir together and cook for a minute or two, then stir in rice.

6. Stir in dill and parsley, then season with salt and pepper; serve at once, top with pumpkin seeds if desired.

Coconut Shrimp Curry

1 large onion, quartered 1 (2-inch-long) piece fresh ginger, peeled 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon sugar 1/4 cup vegetable oil 1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder (preferably Madras) 1 to 2 fresh serrano chiles, halved lengthwise 1 cup water 1 (14-oz) can unsweetened coconut milk (not low fat) 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice 1 lb large shrimp in shell (21 to 25 per lb)

Accompaniment: cooked basmati riceGarnish: lime wedges

Pulse onion and ginger in a food processor until finely chopped. Cook onion mixture with salt and sugar in oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring frequently, until onion begins to brown, about 5 minutes.

Stir in curry powder and chiles and cook, stirring frequently, 2 minutes.

Stir in water, coconut milk, and lime juice and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened, 5 to 8 minutes.

While sauce simmers, peel shrimp (devein if desired) and season with salt and pepper.

Add shrimp to sauce and simmer, stirring occasionally, until shrimp are just cooked through, about 3 minutes. Add salt to taste and serve immediately.

Notes: This is the original recipe. I usually make it with tofu and baby bok choy (as I did for Great Soup). I also use two cans of coconut milk per recipe, and forget about the water... it makes it creamier (not to mention richer tasting!). I also always use Ghee as opposed to vegetable oil.

Cinnamon Curried Lentils

I’m afraid I don’t really have a recipe for these. I suppose I did at one point, but I have no ideas where it might have run off to. I make these so often that I just do it out of habit.

So... to make them goes something like this...

Ingredients

2 large onions (spanish preferably)1 tbsp Ghee (or substitute vegetable oil)4 cloves garlic3 sticks cinnamon (based on 6” sticks)2 tbsp curry powder (preferably Madras)4 cups vegetable stock2 cups lentils (green)

Directions

Chop onion and saute till browned. Add garlic, cinnamon sticks and curry powder. Toss and coat in skillet and leave on low heat for a couple of minutes until the spices become fragrant.

Add stock and lentils. Bring to a rapid boil, then turn down to a low simmer.

Simmer gently for approx. 45 minutes until lentils are cooked (softened by not mushy). Mind heat and moisture content as cooking is nearing completion.

End product should be slightly moist... more dry than not, but with almost a creamy textured sauce.

My Hummous

Again... I don’t have a recipe. It’s second nature. And it’s always a little bit different every time. The only thing I can do is give a basic outline and suggest you play around with it.

Ingredients

• chick peas (preferably soaked and cooked from dry... if not, use a couple of cans, drained, reserve liquid)

• olive oil• sesame oil• lemon juice• hot chili sauce (my favourite is by Saigon Hot Chile Sauce by Fraternity)• garlic cloves• tahini• ground cumin

Directions

Place chick peas in food processor. Add approx. equal amounts of olive oil and sesame oil... may 3-4 tbsp of each. Add approx. half as much lemon juice.

Turn on food processor and test for consistency. Add a little of the reserved liquid to thin. Be very careful... it doesn’t take much liquid to make it go soupy in a hurry. The only way to rescue it then is to add more chick peas.

Add garlic (to your taste... I usually put in at least 4 -5 cloves), hot sauce (a good squeeze or two... to taste), tahini (a couple of tablespoons), and cumin (a couple of teaspoons).

Turn on food processor. Test for taste. Add more of any ingredient until it suits your palate. I like mine with a bit of a zip... and usually end up adding a little extra lemon juice and hot sauce.

The final consistency should be thick and creamy... I like mine even a little chunky, not over processed.